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What the mayor may have demonstrated in his Sunday show outing, said one Democrat, is this: “He may not be ready for prime time.”

Where Booker has been successful is as a communicator — he gives strong speeches, and was frequently deployed as a surrogate for Obama during the 2008 campaign.

“He’s a solid Democrat, but he’s built this (reputation) where he speaks his mind and is unafraid to speak is his mind,” said Republican operative Mike DuHaime, a top Christie adviser.

Kean raised the prospect of Booker becoming a Cabinet member in a second Obama administration if he doesn’t run for office again.

“There could be a number of Cabinet positions open, one of them might be attractive to him,” Kean said. “He could do what certain candidates have done in the past, these cable shows would love to have you. (A) number of ex-candidates who have done pretty well there. There are a number of doors open to him if he wants to take them. He’s still an attractive, compelling candidate.”

But despite insisting that they welcomed the focus on the Bain debate, Obama aides were displeased with Booker. Several Democrats suggested he was more loyal to the donors who fund his campaigns and his education reform efforts than he was to the president, and that he simply showed where his sympathies really lie. And Booker’s remarks helped muddy the message that Chicago was trying to deliver.

A second-term Obama administration may not inspire much more fear than the first-term one did. But there are ways that an incumbent president can make things difficult for an aspiring candidate.

Democratic strategist Hank Sheinkopf, who has handled New Jersey races, said that only time will tell whether Booker suffered damage this week — but that he can’t exist without the donors who would fund a statewide campaign.

“He did help himself with Wall Street,” Sheinkopf said. “You can’t buy TV ads with great compliments — you gotta pay cash.”

maybe he should just switch to the GOP. These days there is no room in the Democratic party for anyone who is not a Hollywood progressive and a closet marxist. Even Hillary was not far enough left for the Dem party leaders in 2008. The Democratic party of today is not the same Democratic party that LBJ and John Kennedy knew

lol. Never heard of the guy until last week, and until he "walked back" the comments I thought him and Christie were a strong combination. Booker - stick with Plan A and Comments A. Don't let the WH fool you.

Obama is utterly un-re-electable and is going to loose to a squish named Romney.

Booker's reputation did not take a hit. He simply peed on his own reputation. He did it all by his own egotistical, self-absorbing, big-money-butt-kissing self. I hope that Obama loses Booker's phone number. Leave him to his kingdom that is a cesspool in New Jersey.

Booker spoke the truth from his heart and his own party gave him the choice of being thrown under the bus or get in lock step with them. Obama's team wants to control the media so tightly it looks like the way dictators run their "free" press. Shameful. Booker should have taken the high road and stick to his original comments.

Didn't this guy run into a burning house and rescue a little girl? -that pretty awesome.

And the dems want to dump this guy?

this is the part that gets me: "It is absolutely crazy to go and blast the president,” said one Democratic operative who knows Booker well, and asked not to be identified. “And he could have gotten away with it"

"And he could have gotten away with it..."

"I laid my raincoat on the table in such a way as to be able to remove the ice axe which was in the pocket. I decided not to miss the wonderful opportunity that presented itself. The moment Trotsky began reading the article, he gave me my chance; I took out the ice axe from the raincoat, gripped it in my hand and, with my eyes closed, dealt him a terrible blow on the head" -Ramón Mercader

Having seen Booker on T.V. before, I was impressed with what appeared to be an honest moderate Democrat (politician). As I watched him Sunday morning I was amazed. Here was a politician who was willing to admit that the President and leader of his party was playing cheap,dirty, dishonest politics. At that moment I thought, wow, this guy is what Obama was supposed to be. Someone who could actually bring the parties together with his honesty. I guess I was naive, that statement destroyed his chances with the looney far left tho appealing to the independents and hopefully moderate Dems. Then came the call from Axelrod (I assume) and the walk-back which most likely lost him the moderate Dems and independents. A twofer. He managed to pzz off the left with his original statement and most everyone else by not standing up to the powers that be and sticking with his original (hinest) feelings. Nobody said being an honest politician was easy.